Abstract/Description

Since 1985 CIP (The International Potato Center) has assembled one of the largest existing collections of Ipomoea batatas (sweet potato) and the wild species related to this crop. Numerous sites have been found where large populations of wild...

Notes

Since 1985 CIP (The International Potato Center) has assembled one of the largest existing collections of Ipomoea batatas (sweet potato) and the wild species related to this crop. Numerous sites have been found where large populations of wild Ipomoea species still occur or where cultivars are still being grown under traditional practices in the developing world.
The cultivated germplasm has been obtained from a wide geographic and ecological range and could be an important source of genes for increasing the crop's adaptability. Nine out of 11 wild species and two hybridogenic species of section Batatas described in Latin America and the Caribbean, have already been collected. Two more species have been added to section Batatas from collections made in Mexico.
The strategic location of CIP in Peru, close to the
primary centre of diversity of I.batatas and its allied wild relatives, has played an important role in developing this genebank. CIP's involvement with a large number of institutions in the Americas has also facilitated the receipt of donations from national and institutional collections and the active participation in all collecting activities of scientists from national programmes in Latin America.
For more details, contact:
International Potato Center
Apartado 5969 - Lima
PERU